James Broad

James Broad (January 27, 1958 – November 20, 2001) was an American heavyweight boxer who was an amateur star and, prior to the boycott, set to represent America in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. As a pro he won the NABF heavyweight title and was a regular sparring partner of a peak Mike Tyson. He fought the likes of James Smith, Razor Ruddock, Tony Tucker, Tim Witherspoon, Johnny du Plooy, Francesco Damiani, and Greg Page.

For other people named James Broad, see James Broad (disambiguation).
James Broad
Statistics
Real nameJames W. Broad
Nickname(s)Broad Axe
Weight(s)Heavyweight
Height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
NationalityAmerican
Born(1958-01-27)January 27, 1958
Greensboro, North Carolina
DiedNovember 20, 2001(2001-11-20) (aged 43)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights33
Wins23
Wins by KO15
Losses10

Military service

James Broad took up boxing while serving in the U.S. Army, being a Specialist 4th class stationed at Fort Ord.

Amateur career

Broad took up boxing when he joined the army in 1976. He beat Chris McDonald on points, and scored a first-round-knockout victory over Marvis Frazier in the 1980 Olympic Trials finals,[1] where he qualified for the 1980 U.S. Olympic Boxing team which ultimately did not compete due to President Jimmy Carter's order to boycott the Olympics. He also lost a decision to Tony Tubbs.

Highlights

Professional career

Nicknamed "Broad-Axe", Broad turned pro in 1981 and put together 12 wins, including a 4th-round knockout of future Heavyweight Champ James "Bonecrusher" Smith. His weight was already a problem at this early stage of his career, but Broad worked down to 228 for his first big fight, against fellow undefeated prospect Marvis Frazier. Broad rocked Frazier with his signature uppercuts but was unable to replicate his knockout victory in the amateurs, and he was outworked over 10 rounds.

Broad bounced back to outpoint Larry Alexander over 12 rounds in 1983 then knockout contender Eddie Gregg in 8 rounds to win the NABF title in 1984. For his first title defense Broad scaled a whopping 261 lbs and was knocked out in 2 rounds by once and future world champion Tim Witherspoon in 1985.

Downward Spiral

Broad was unable to get back into serious shape for the remainder of his career, and his results suffered. He lost a 12-round decision to top contender and future world champion Tony Tucker for the USBA title in 1986, and in 1987 was twice outpointed over 10 rounds, by Francesco Damiani in Italy and then by ex-world champ Greg Page, in a fight where both men were down.

Broad outpointed future cruiserweight world title-challenger Patrick Lumumba but went to South Africa and was poleaxed in 4 rounds by Johnny DuPlooy. In his next fight he was stopped on his feet, in questionable circumstances, by rising contender Donovan "Razor" Ruddock. During all this time Broad was a sparring partner for a peak Mike Tyson and took many punches in the gym.

Death

In 1992 Boxing Illustrated reported that Broad intended to make a comeback and wanted to be world champion, despite the fact he was banned in Nevada and California both for failing a neurological exam and testing positive for Hepatitis. He somehow managed to get 4 more fights, losing 3 of them. By 2000 Broad was said to be homeless in Las Vegas and badly brain damaged, but when he died in 2001, aged only 43, he was back in his hometown of Greensboro, North Carolina.

Professional boxing record
23 Wins (15 knockouts, 8 decisions), 10 Losses (3 knockouts, 7 decisions)
Result Opp
Record		 Opponent Type Round Date Location Notes
Loss 13-8 Calvin "Concrete" Jones MD 10 20/08/1993 Melrose Park, Illinois, United States
Win 30-10-2 Philipp Brown PTS 8 26/06/1993 Saint George, Utah, United States
Loss 3-0 Daniel Dăncuţă UD 4 14/02/1993 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 11-1 Billy "Bronco" Wright UD 6 06/10/1992 Miami Beach, Florida, United States 54-60, 55-59, 56-58.
Win -- Maurice Smith TKO 4 05/10/1991 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Referee stopped the bout at 1:26 of the fourth round.
Loss 20-1-1 Donovan "Razor" Ruddock TKO 1 06/12/1988 Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada Referee stopped the bout at 2:58 of the first round.
Loss 17-1 Johnny du Plooy KO 4 27/02/1988 Johannesburg, South Africa
Win 6-1 Patrick Lumumba PTS 10 01/08/1987 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 26-6 Greg Page MD 10 30/05/1987 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States 94-95, 93-96, 94-94.
Loss 16-0 Francesco Damiani UD 10 11/04/1987 Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy 95-99, 95-99, 95-99.
Loss 32-0 Tony "TNT" Tucker UD 12 26/09/1986 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States USBA Heavyweight Title. 111-118, 109-117, 110-117.
Win 3-11-1 Wesley Smith KO 2 28/06/1986 Troy, New York, United States
Win 23-8-1 Bobby Crabtree KO 5 03/05/1986 Glens Falls, New York, United States Crabtree knocked out at 1:27 of the fifth round.
Win 13-1 Rodney Frazier TKO 1 25/01/1986 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Referee stopped the bout at 0:55 of the first round.
Loss 19-2 "Terrible" Tim Witherspoon KO 2 29/04/1985 Buffalo, New York, United States NABF Heavyweight Title. Broad knocked out at 2:35 of the second round.
Win 5-2-1 Sterling Benjamin TKO 2 14/12/1984 New York City, United States Referee stopped the bout at 2:59 of the second round.
Win 20-0-1 Eddie Gregg TKO 8 23/08/1984 New York City, United States NABF Heavyweight Title. Referee stopped the bout at 0:48 of the eighth round.
Win 32-4 Tommy Franco Thomas TKO 3 03/05/1984 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 22-9-2 Larry Alexander SD 12 17/11/1983 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 12-7-4 Leroy Diggs TKO 8 18/08/1983 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Referee stopped the bout at 2:43 of the eighth round.
Loss 8-0 Marvis Frazier UD 10 10/04/1983 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States 3-6, 4-5, 4-5.
Win 19-11-1 Tony Pulu KO 3 10/03/1983 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 19-10 Walter Santemore UD 12 06/01/1983 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States ESPN Heavyweight Title.
Win 12-0 Donnie "Master of Disaster" Long MD 10 17/10/1982 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States 6-3, 5-4, 5-5.
Win 16-5-2 Randy Mack TKO 8 16/09/1982 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 5-9 Art Robinson DQ 4 04/08/1982 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 2-2 Lonnie Chapman KO 2 18/07/1982 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 5-3-1 Harold Rice PTS 8 02/04/1982 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 13-3-2 Lou Benson, Jr. PTS 8 11/02/1982 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win 4-4-3 Robert Evans TKO 6 17/12/1981 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
Win -- James "Bonecrusher" Smith TKO 4 05/11/1981 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Referee stopped the bout at 1:07 of the fourth round.
Win -- Greg Stephany KO 3 16/09/1981 New York City, United States Referee stopped the bout at 1:21 of the third round.
Win 0-4 Albert Collins KO 1 11/08/1981 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States Collins refused to continue at 0:59 of the first round.[3]
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References
  1. James Broad Amateur Record at the BoxingRecords. Last updated: April 12, 2006.
  2. Frazier advances at Olympic Boxing Trials (Associated Press), Havre Daily News, Jun 17, 1980, p. 7.
  3. SPORTS NEWS BRIEFS; Jersey Suspends Boxer For Quitting in Bout. The New York Times.
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